This is a consignment item. It is a covered silver chalice or ceremonial drinking cup housed in a very ornate presentation case, once owned by Großherzog (Grand Duke) Friedrich II (1857-1928), the Grand Duchy of Baden’s final ruler. He ruled from his father Friedrich’s death in 1907 until the German Empire’s 1918 demise. The cup was produced in Berlin by one of Kaiser Wilhelm II’s house jewelers, H. J. Wilm. Its overall height is 7 1/4.” The diameter at the rim is 2 1/4,” while its diameter at the bottom is 2 7/8.” [While we use the term “chalice,” we do not feel its use was necessarily religious].
The vessel sports a fitted top, whose handle is graphically depicted as rising flames. It lifts off to reveal a polished, gilt-toned inner bowl. The lid’s underside is also gold-toned. The bowl is quite small (from the standpoint of a liquid-holding vessel). It would hold no more than 3-4 ounces of liquid. The bowl’s exterior displays the central emblem from 1. Badisches Leib-Grenadier-Regiment Nr 109 officer’s wappen. [This was the Grand Duchy’s most elite infantry regiment. It was founded in 1803 and garrisoned at the capital city of Karlsruhe. The regiment was assigned to the XIV. Armeekorps. It fought extensively in the Napoleonic Wars. It ranked with other kingdoms’ elite regiments, such as Prussia’s 1. Garde-Regiment zu Fuß, Saxony’s 1 Sächs. Leib-Grenadier-Regiment Nr 100, Hesse-Darmstadt’s Leibgarde-Infanterie-Regiment (1. Grossherzog. Hessisches) Nr 115, and Württemberg’s Grenadier-Regiment (1. Württembergisches) Königin Olga]. The emblem consists of a sunburst with a red, enamel cross in its center. (In my opinion, this regiment’s wappen is one of Imperial Germany’s most beautiful).
The chalice’s opposite side features Baden’s crowned Coat-of-Arms. The Coat-of-Arms’ trim and its crown are rose gold. A three-dimensional griffin’s head serves as the chalice’s stem. The mythical creature symbolized Baden, just as a black eagle did Prussia and rampant lions did Bavaria. It was displayed on Infanterie and Dragoner pickelhauben, as well as on Artillerie kugelhelme. The griffin is beautifully executed, with its beak, ears, and feathers richly detailed. Baden’s royal crown sits atop the griffin’s head, cradling the bowl’s base. (I missed this crown the first time that I looked at the chalice). Its details are truly magnificent. The griffin stem rests upon a simple, sculpted metal base. The base’s bottom displays six square pointed metal designs that resemble pointed studs. The hallmark for Berlin’s H. J. Wilm firm appears between two of the “studs,” along with a .800 silver hallmark, as well as the half moon and the Hohenzollern Crown specified by Kaiser Wilhelm I in 1885 when he Germany’s silver and gold standards. This magnificent chalice comes housed in a deluxe presentation/storage case. It measures 8 1/4″ x 4″ x 3 ½.” The finely constructed case is made of leatherette. It sports an unusual swing away catch to lock it. Inside the case we see a royal purple silk upper half. In the silk liner’s center, embossed in gold, is the inscription written below. “H. J. Wilm Königl. Hof Juwelier Berlin” A crown appears above the H. J. Wilm and a small design just below the attribution’s last line. The case’s bottom is lined in matching purple velvet. The base is fitted to accommodate the chalice and its top.

This is an amazing personality piece for Grand Duke Friedrich of Baden. The quality is superb. It would most certainly become the centerpiece of any collection.

Description

This is a consignment item. It is a covered silver chalice or ceremonial drinking cup housed in a very ornate presentation case, once owned by Großherzog (Grand Duke) Friedrich II (1857-1928), the Grand Duchy of Baden’s final ruler. He ruled from his father Friedrich’s death in 1907 until the German Empire’s 1918 demise. The cup was produced in Berlin by one of Kaiser Wilhelm II’s house jewelers, H. J. Wilm. Its overall height is 7 1/4.” The diameter at the rim is 2 1/4,” while its diameter at the bottom is 2 7/8.” [While we use the term “chalice,” we do not feel its use was necessarily religious].
The vessel sports a fitted top, whose handle is graphically depicted as rising flames. It lifts off to reveal a polished, gilt-toned inner bowl. The lid’s underside is also gold-toned. The bowl is quite small (from the standpoint of a liquid-holding vessel). It would hold no more than 3-4 ounces of liquid. The bowl’s exterior displays the central emblem from 1. Badisches Leib-Grenadier-Regiment Nr 109 officer’s wappen. [This was the Grand Duchy’s most elite infantry regiment. It was founded in 1803 and garrisoned at the capital city of Karlsruhe. The regiment was assigned to the XIV. Armeekorps. It fought extensively in the Napoleonic Wars. It ranked with other kingdoms’ elite regiments, such as Prussia’s 1. Garde-Regiment zu Fuß, Saxony’s 1 Sächs. Leib-Grenadier-Regiment Nr 100, Hesse-Darmstadt’s Leibgarde-Infanterie-Regiment (1. Grossherzog. Hessisches) Nr 115, and Württemberg’s Grenadier-Regiment (1. Württembergisches) Königin Olga]. The emblem consists of a sunburst with a red, enamel cross in its center. (In my opinion, this regiment’s wappen is one of Imperial Germany’s most beautiful).
The chalice’s opposite side features Baden’s crowned Coat-of-Arms. The Coat-of-Arms’ trim and its crown are rose gold. A three-dimensional griffin’s head serves as the chalice’s stem. The mythical creature symbolized Baden, just as a black eagle did Prussia and rampant lions did Bavaria. It was displayed on Infanterie and Dragoner pickelhauben, as well as on Artillerie kugelhelme. The griffin is beautifully executed, with its beak, ears, and feathers richly detailed. Baden’s royal crown sits atop the griffin’s head, cradling the bowl’s base. (I missed this crown the first time that I looked at the chalice). Its details are truly magnificent. The griffin stem rests upon a simple, sculpted metal base. The base’s bottom displays six square pointed metal designs that resemble pointed studs. The hallmark for Berlin’s H. J. Wilm firm appears between two of the “studs,” along with a .800 silver hallmark, as well as the half moon and the Hohenzollern Crown specified by Kaiser Wilhelm I in 1885 when he Germany’s silver and gold standards. This magnificent chalice comes housed in a deluxe presentation/storage case. It measures 8 1/4″ x 4″ x 3 ½.” The finely constructed case is made of leatherette. It sports an unusual swing away catch to lock it. Inside the case we see a royal purple silk upper half. In the silk liner’s center, embossed in gold, is the inscription written below. “H. J. Wilm Königl. Hof Juwelier Berlin” A crown appears above the H. J. Wilm and a small design just below the attribution’s last line. The case’s bottom is lined in matching purple velvet. The base is fitted to accommodate the chalice and its top.

This is an amazing personality piece for Grand Duke Friedrich of Baden. The quality is superb. It would most certainly become the centerpiece of any collection.

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LIFE-SIZED KAISER WILHELM II BUST

SKU: 20-337

$1,995.00

Many years ago I purchased this display bust of Kaiser Wilhelm II. The seller (a very trusted friend and colleague) told me then that it was one of two busts produced at Madame Tussauds™ London workshop for display in a museum or similar setting. It appears to have been cast from a mold and is made of a hard plastic-composite material. It presents an excellent likeness of Wilhelm II. Its eyes are hand painted and implanted with three-dimensional lashes. It also sports a luxurious mustache and a partial wiglet. Both are made of real human hair the same color as the Kaiser’s hair as a young man. Since the bust was designed to display headdresses appropriate for the Kaiser, it was unnecessary to fully cover his head with hair, which also saved the cost of a full wig. With a headdress in place, the hair can be combed down properly so that only the sides and back peek out from underneath.
I have owned the bust for at least ten years, during which I used it extensively for photographing high-end headdress items, including some that once belonged to Wilhelm II. It is now time for someone else to enjoy it. Its realism is spot on. I know when I put a pickelhaube on this bust, I feel as though the old boy is with me. I almost feel the need to stand to attention and click my heels!

If you have an important piece of headdress in your collection that you want to display in an absolutely first-rate manner, this is for you!

This is a consignment item. It is an utterly spectacular pair of Generalfeldmarschall’s shoulder boards that were once owned by Kaiser Wilhelm II as the Regimental Chef of 3. Garde-Ulanen-Regiment. The 3. Garde-Ulanen-Regiment was the third (obviously), and final Garde-Ulanen-Regiment. It was created in 1860 during Kaiser Wilhelm I’s reign (Kaiser Wilhelm II’s grandfather). It was garrisoned in Potsdam with all the other elite Garde-Regiments, including the Regiment der Garde du Corps and the 1. Garde-Regiment zu Fuß. [Potsdam was also the site of Sanssouci, the Hohenzollern Summer Palace built by Frederick the Great (Frederick II). It was also where the last Hohenzollern palace was built for Kronprinz Wilhelm and his bride, Kronprinzessin Cecilia, and christened “Cecilienhof” in her honor. The palace was used for the 1945 Potsdam Conference of U.S. President Harry Truman, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and USSR Communist Party General Secretary Joseph Stalin. Today the Cecilienhof is, in addition to being a German historical treasure, a conference center/hotel with an excellent restaurant. I have stayed within its confines, wherein history exudes from every nook and cranny].
The shoulder boards are massive, measuring 5” x 2 ¾.” They each display two gold bullion braids sandwiching a center silver bullion braid as the primary background. The silver bullion braid sports black chevrons that identify these as Prussian shoulder boards. A magnificent set of crossed silver Generalfeldmarschall (GFM) batons are installed on the gold/silver bullion ropes. [Full-sized batons were issued to the man who achieved the rank, with the owner’s name noted on each one]. Each miniature baton measures 2 ¼.” If you look closely, you can see Prussian Crowns and Hohenzollern Eagles.
The sumptuous detailing just keeps on coming! Laid over the batons is Kaiser Wilhelm II’s royal cypher, with a beautiful Prussian Crown directly above it. The fire gilding is little changed from when these shoulder boards were manufactured more than one-hundred-years ago, which renders these two items particularly striking. They rivet your eyes to the shoulder boards’ centers like miniature beacons. Two different colors underlay the gold and silver bullion ropes. The first, on which the bullion is mounted, is yellow. In turn, the yellow is mounted on a slightly-larger red underlay. The color combination connects them to the 3. Garde-Ulanen-Regiment, as yellow is its central coloring scheme (unlike the 1. Garde-Ulanen-Regiment and 2. Garde-Ulanen-Regiment). Their reverses reveal the strap attachments that allow each shoulder board to slip quite quickly onto the ulanka (tunic). I have seen countless Kaiser Wilhelm II shoulder boards. This pair’s condition is MINT, perhaps the best that I have ever offered. If you are looking for a pair of shoulder boards that can become the crown jewels of your collection, you need look no further.

CERAMIC WALL TILE FEATURING KAISER WILHELM II

SKU: 20-293

$175.00

This is a fine ceramic wall tile featuring Kaiser Wilhelm II in high-relief profile. The tile measures 11″ x 11.” The background color is blue, while the Kaiser is in white. To his left, we see “Wilhelm II.” Some VERY light chipping appears in one place on the left, which we will highlight in the photographs that accompany our description. A strong hanger is on the reverse. It is quite handsome.

About Us

I'm Kenneth (Ken) J. Greenfield, currently of New Port Richey, Florida, located on the West Coast of Florida in the Tampa Bay area. I started out as a collector of Imperial German Militaria, particularly items dealing with the Imperial German Air Service in the early 1960's. After more than forty years of avid collecting, I began to sell a few items to upgrade my collection and help finance my collecting "habit." I attended militaria shows, both to buy and sell. I wanted to spend more time at home and less traveling for the national companies that I had worked for; so, starting my own business seemed like an attractive alternative. I like nothing better than talking with others about militaria, and introducing newcomers to the joys of owning a "piece of history."